Jehovah's Witnesses with OBVIOUS drinking problems?

My in-laws hide liquor in their room. They said it's to keep it from their son and it helps my MIL sleep. My kids found it and brought it up in front of them. Two different stories at once, ahahhahaa. I think they were embarrased.

The trouble with "modest" consumption of alcohol is that every JW has their own idea of what constitutes "modest consumption."

Early on, I was warned off the JWs a non-JW relative, following her attendance at a Jehovahs Witness wedding reception. She was quite appalled by the heavy drinking that she saw going on at that event.

Later, I knew an elder who was rather concerned when named to attend the next session of the Kingdom Ministry School. He told us that he was going to "have to dry himself out beforehand" - referring to his fondness for apple wine, which he consumed for by the flagon full. For nine months after the 1975 debacle, that same elder never ventured out once in field service, and would regularly demolish a 2 litre flagon of sherry over the course of one night. Throughout all this, he kept his position, and was always quite highly regarded in the JW community. (a lot to do with his being a "closet" drinker, I think - you would never ever see him in any public bar around the place).

I myself was not exactly squeaky clean when it came to the subject of the brown bottle. Raised by parents who were modest drinkers, I was first introduced to drinking when I began associating with the local congregation. There was considerable social pressure to indulge in the stuff, and as others have noted, it was an easy habit to adopt - being one of the few escapes / indulgences / releases (call it what you will!) that a Witness is permitted to have.

The "guidance" that I received from the brother whom I studied with was that it was all-right to have the "occassional" heavy session on the grog, but one should still at all times "have all their faculties" about them. (This is indeed what he - an elder and regular pioneer - did).

The immediate problem here is in precisely defining what constitutes "occassional", and where the boundary line between "still having all ones faculties" and having lost them is located!

In my 28 years "in the Truth", I both witnessed - and participated in - much abuse of alcohol.

Reminds me of something that happened shortly after I'd disassociated...

I had remarried a nice non-JW, and we were visiting my dad's sister and her hubby up in Klamath Falls, Oregon. My aunt and uncle-by-marriage were also non-JWs...

I told them a story about how my brother and I [both bullied into the JW religion, me from the age of 5, him from birth] used to sneak into the kitchen and get my dad's bottle of booze out of the refrigerator, pour some of the stuff into the sink, and set it on fire.

We'd crouch in the dark around the kitchen sink, watching that pretty blue and multi-colored flame as the booze burned.

My uncle looked at me, startled, and said, "That must have been some pretty hard liquor!"

At that instant, I realized that my dad must have been a closet alcoholic, all those years that he was beating the "truth™ " into me and my brother.... Because he ALWAYS had some kind of hard liquor around....

A lot of things about my parents' Jehovah's Witness-run family system snapped into focus, then. Dear old self-righteous Daddy was a blazing alcoholic, and all those temper tantrums that he threw were probably fueled by alcohol.

the head with A beer bottle and broke it ( thank goodness I was sporting AFRO,A hairstyle in the60,s) My ex had A bad temper especially when she drink. After we became JW, that anger turn to the kids. The funny thing about the beer bottle over the head, she called the police in order for me to leave. When the police got there, they ask me did I want to press charges against her. The good old days.